(first posted 8/14/2015) It took a while but Toyota, like all who get to the top, began to get complacent and stopped trying so hard. The date in which this happened is up for debate. Personally I think that the 1997 Camry is a good indicator, on the basis that there’s absolutely nothing on it that was improved apart from manufacturing costs and a reduced MSRP. Which was admittedly crucial now that the Japanese economy had collapsed. It also meant that the 1991-1998 Corolla may well be the best Corolla to date.
By 1991 when the E100 Corolla was released, the battle between America and Japan for automotive dominance had long passed its zenith. Despite America’s best efforts at compacts and mid-sized vehicles (and some very decent fighters still duking it out), the Japanese’s expertise at building them more efficiently and with superior mechanical reliability meant only one thing. An ever-increasing number of buyers going to the Toyota/Honda/Nissan/Mazda/Mitsubishi dealerships first (probably in that order) and not even bothering trying to check other brands because they were bound to find something that they liked there. Now the Japanese could stop going on the offense and start defending their place by refining their cars even more.
The quote from the top of the article refers to Dr. Akihiko Saito, then working as the development chief for the Corolla, in regards to what he wanted to develop in the seventh-generation Corolla. Saito himself joined the company in 1968, getting involved in chassis design and vibration testing before being promoted to acting Development leader in the middle of the fifth-gen Corolla’s development cycle. It seems corporate agreed that he had done a hell of a Job because he was tasked with overseeing all of the Corollas up to this one, his crowning achievement in Corollas.
So what do we have? For one, it was bigger than its predecessor gaining 1.3 inches in wheelbase and 2 inches in overall length. It was also wider and taller and heavier, so much so that it stopped being a subcompact and moved up a peg to compact class. As with any Toyota of the era, it was beautifully screwed together and built to the highest of specifications. Saito believed “The impression that a car makes is first developed when its essential functions and performance significantly exceed expectations.”
The ride and handling were given special attention and were developed in Toyota’s Shibetsu City proving grounds. Said test track would later be used to develop the rather more performance oriented Lexus LF-A. The American market would only get a 4-door sedan and a wagon for a lineup, while Europeans would also get a three and five door hatchback. The Japanese (naturally) had a considerably more ecletic lineup.
Apart from the option of four-wheel drive on the sedan and the wagon there were special variants, such as the pretty 2-door Levin Coupe.
And the Corolla Ceres faux-hardtop.
On a more practical front there was also the Toyota Corolla van. Based on the wagon, it was completely stripped out and sold to commercial users.
Engine-wise you could have either a 1.6 or a 1.8-liter engine depending on the model in America. Other markets had the option of smaller 1.3 and 1.5-liter gas and 2.0 or 2.2-liter diesel engines.
But inside is where the Corolla earned the most of its accolades. Very simple and straightforward, with high quality materials everywhere and soft-touch plastics even in places you’d rarely touch. Also, the ubiquitous green LCD clock that was seemingly required by law on all Toyotas at the time was also present and correct.
Naturally, it was a hit, people had to form orderly queues to buy it and to prove that Dr. Saito had succeeded, Car and Driver called the Corolla wagon “An econohauler with Lexus trickle-down.” Even today, around 20 years since they were released and now officially in the bargain-basement of used cars, you can pick one up and assuming the previous owner parked it on the shade every so often and remember to top the oil and the water every now and then you’ll get a perfectly serviceable, competent runabout. I see them constantly as members on the ranks of the Terrifying Tegucigalpa Taxis and even if being mercilessly beaten on for 15 hours seven days a week isn’t doing their longevity any favors, they just soldier on dutifully. And when they break down (which happens even to the best of cars) the parts are cheap and the car is easy to work on.
I must admit, regretfully, that I was never fond of the Corolla as a kid. It wasn’t because my school’s vice principal owned one like the one you see above. Or my English teacher, or my Spanish teacher, or my Civic Studies teacher, or my Social Studies teacher…you get the point. It was because it wasn’t limited to them, like I couldn’t walk a block without seeing three or four of the damn things. So I kinda pushed them aside as an example of what people who don’t know what they’re doing buy. In hindsight, turns out they bought it because it was exactly what they were doing. Getting their money’s worth, plus some added value. Sadly, it would be the last time I could say that about the Corolla.
It’s almost cathartic to write an article singing the praises about a vehicle I had nothing but indifference for until recently. Like clockwork, in 1997 the new Corolla was released. A Corolla that was not developed by a Japan that went further and spared no expense in…anything really. The economy was, as described by Toyota themselves on their heritage site “sluggish”. Efficiency and making the most of less were they new directives. In place of Dr. Saito we had Takayasu Honda, known in some circles as “Mr. Corolla”. In regards to the eigth-generation Corolla he said he wanted to “…maintain the status of ‘the best’ compact car…”. Do you see the key bit there? The name of the game wasn’t to push the envelope anymore. As a kid unburdened with the thought of foreign economies and new safety regulations leading the way in car design, all I knew was that the new Corolla looked smaller and a bit older than the old one.
The seventh-generation Corolla was, in your author’s opinion, not only the best vehicle in its segment at the time but the best, most well-rounded vehicle to have ever carried the Corolla model name. Sure the AE86 and the Corolla FX were better lookers and handlers. But for the populace that wanted a Corolla to be their jack-of-all-trades. It didn’t get much better than this.
N.B. Featured blue Corolla photos obtained from the Curbside Classic Cohort, courtesy of Triborough; gold Corolla courtesy of Brendan Saur.
Best Corolla they ever made tough reliable and seem to last forever NZ new cars were galvanised same as the best selling Corona so all you have to do is throw an engine in every 20 or so years, they also came with a local suspension tune so do actually handle far better than the JDM cars, mate o mine has a 1600 5 door for sale right now runs as well as it did new 5 speed works fine someone will just love it.
The nineties, Toyota’s peak era. This Corolla gen (and the contemporary Carina E) did very well, commercially. The hatchback was of course the most popular Corolla model over here. Perfect quality and with the best manuals available on the market. A manual transmission in any Toyota always worked flawlessly, and was very easy (as in completely thoughtlessly) to operate. Couldn’t go wrong.
The Corolla hatchback was popular among the young crowd too. It was a practical hatchback alright, but it looked like a coupe. Some bigger-than-standard rims and you could call it a day. The most popular starting point would be a 3-door 1.6 GTSi.
From the Toyota-days that the D-segment Carina E (typical family car, like a Ford Mondeo) was even available as a 2.0 GTi, with more power than the current 2.0 liter.
This is how its successor in Europe looked. I prefer the E100’s face, to put it mildly.
You have to wonder why they did that.
Some kind of hint to the upcoming 1999 Yaris (XP10, see below), maybe. And in that same year, the Corolla E110 (pictured above) got a facelift with a more “straightforward” front and headlight units.
In 1998 only, Toyota sold this car in Brazil, my home country. It was a disaster. People hated it to the point that they quickly switched it for JDM style in 1999.
The Carina was our Corona NZ market cars had the suspension retuned by race driver Chris Amon with wider rims stiffer shocks revised balljoints different spring rates the difference to JDM cars is chalk and cheese the amon cars corner flat with excellent turn in and have great grip The JDM cars understeer horribly have little grip and wallow on the road, I had an Amon tuned car it was great to drive too fast on twisty roads it had the silver top 2.0L and went ok about 200kmh flat out but top speed wasnt really the point. Some of these 100 series Corollas came equipped with the 2.0L engine too and are quite a good performer.
The 1992-1997 Carina E (TA19, E for Europe) was also built in the UK. The wagon and GTi were only built in Japan though. Below a 300 hp Carina E in the BTCC, based on the 2.0 GTi.
Definitely the high point of the Corolla. Truly the last Corolla that was aspirational in my opinion.
My aunt Kathy owned a ’93 DX sedan I remember fondly from when I was little. It was pretty well-optioned with upgraded cloth interior, all power accessories, and a sunroof.
My favorite memory with that car was the time I left the window open going through the car wash. When I was little car washes used to make me nervous so I’d hop up front and sit in the passenger’s seat to be closer to either my mom, aunt, grandfather, etc. One time in Kathy’s Corolla I forgot to close the rear window all the way. Oops.
Small chronological correction: The subsequent E110 Corolla actually arrived in May 1995 in Japan (although I think it didn’t show up in the U.S. until 1997 (MY1998), so that part is right). The E120 then came out in 2000, marking a shift from a four-year to a five-year design cycle.
I quite like the E100 Levin and Trueno (which interestingly have a different dash from the sedans, I believe shared only with the Ceres/Marino hardtops). They got a bunch of performance stuff the U.S. market never saw, including a supercharged engine (also offered on the previous E90 coupes), the 20-valve version of the 4A-GE, and the interesting and very complex Super Strut suspension.
Sadly, the fact that that stuff didn’t sell very well (particularly in the U.S. — the E90 coupe seems to have been a sales flop) is probably a major reason Toyota gave up on it. I don’t particularly care for most of Toyota’s current lineup except maybe the 86, but I can understand how they might get defensive about car buffs complaining that Toyota no longer offers much in the way of performance models. (“We used to, but no one bought them!”)
This generation was one of the compacts my mother looked at in 1997 when she was replacing her VH Commodore. I went on a test drive with her in a base model Corolla and by then it was pretty dated and the base interior was just too drab. She had her heart set on a Protege at one point but then fell in love with the Holden Astra she ended up buying: just as old a design as the Corolla, but with a much cheerier interior (nice fabrics, lighter greys). It was reliable, although build quality could have been better, and it was fun to drive. It was definitely more interesting than the Corolla. I’ve no doubt this Corolla was a fine car but it’s not for me.
I had a 1993 Corolla DX. I bought it with 10,000 miles on the odometer. I believe it was a dealer loaner. I bought it to replace a 1988 Mercury Tracer (Mazda 323) that ‘imploded’ at 75,000 miles.
The Corolla was arguably the best value in an automobile I ever owned. TOTALLY trouble free the only repair I ever made was when I hit a short piece of 4×4 lumber that fell off a truck in front of me on the freeway and had to replace the front suspension strut. Of course I replaced both at the same time. The quality of the interior was indeed very good for a car in that price range. The carpet seemed a bit cheap though but the floor mats I bought made that a non-issue.
The only reason I sold it was to get something ‘fancier’ and more powerful. The Corolla did have AC and AM-FM but no power windows, seats or mirrors.
Yeah, to my eye it did look like a mini-Lexus also.
One of the big reasons why I never considered buying 1 of these when they were new was that unlike the contemporary Civic, these Corollas didn’t offer a 2 door coupe and/or a hatchback here in the U.S. But even worse, while the wheelbase was lengthened over the previous generation, this Corolla still had a sub 100 inch wheelbase. (The Civic had a 103 inch wheelbase.) And being partial to 2 doors, Nissan had a more interesting car in the SE-R.
I do find the “mini Lexus” wagon interesting, though. But at over 6 feet tall, all models of Corolla up to and including the generation here are too cramped for me to drive easily/safely.
Interesting…my Dad is 6’3″ and drives a 2011 Corolla, and it fits him just fine. Differences in driving position, I guess…
Car & Driver or Motor Trend referred to the 03 as a “baby Lexus” as well. One of those things that auto writers like to throw around, I guess. Like “premium” and “refinement” and “bespoke”. In the 80s one MT journo used the word “ergonomic” at least eight times in a few paragraphs. Like a kid learning a new word.
C&D and MT writers use the most florid prose to impress each other, rather than inform the reader. Why I stopped reading them years ago. Automobile is perhaps the worst in this regard. Pretentious claptrap.
Whoever buys the most ad pages gets the most glowing press it appears.
These look like a sane, honest value. So understated but blatant in fulfilling it’s duties.
Do these dilatants even know what “bespoke” means? It means custom made of course and even modern day Bentleys, though the buyer gets to chose the color of the leather seats, are not custom made. The bodies of Rolls-Royce, Dusenbergs, Hispano-Suizas from the classic era were bespoke.
I had a Schwinn Sting-ray bicycle that was bespoke too. Each wheel had 72 spokes, I think. 🙂
Oh yes, the automobile magazine ‘journos’ are also infatuated with self-coined terms like ‘comparo.’ Could it be their publications have so much advertising in them there is no room left to spell out comparison.
No, they don’t have the time to spell it out. They’re too busy right now, loading up at the buffet. Offered by the automaker; somewhere in a nice sunny country, with a beautiful scenery. And great winding roads, to test the latest model’s sporty handling.
I like the E110 version 1998-02 versions of the Corolla (next to the E90 1988-92 versions since it bore much more closer resemblance to the E110 than the E100 version as featured here) since the E110 was only slightly smaller/shorter than the 2000-06 Lexus IS 300/Toyota Altezza and as such a mini-lexus in its own right.
The one E110 Corolla I’ve spent any time in felt cheaper inside than any of the E100 or E90 models I’ve experienced. It was the base CE model though, so maybe the quality of some of the materials was actually lower to keep costs down?
Now the resemblance between the similar sized Toyota Corolla E110 vs. the Lexus IS 300. Almost identical but yet both cars do not share everything in common except size similarities and perhaps a little bit of the design cues.
Having contributed these photo comments six years ago, I failed to mention that the E110 Corollas and Lexus IS were and still both in the compact size class today even as of 2021. The world of differences between the two are profound though. The Corolla being a front wheel drive competes more directly with the bargain compacts such as the Subaru Impreza, Mazda 3, Nissan Sentra, Honda Civic and the Volkswagen Jetta. The Lexus IS which is a Rear Wheel Drive would compete more with the likes of the BMW 3 Series and one Front Wheel Drive which is the Audi 4/5 Series.
Don’t hate too much on the next Gen. Had a ’98 passed through the family, grandpa to dad, then to my sister. Was lightly used (150k kms at the end), but could have lasted another decade and a half, and twice the kilometers. It was completely indifferent to drive, but was well put together, was reliable, and extremely competent. It sadly met it’s fate in an impromptu bumper car match in Winnipeg. It may not have been the best generation, but it would be a bit before it got terrible.
Had a ’95 and ’98 Prizm. Both were generally nice cars, interior was a bit nicer on the ’98 but the exterior was more plain. Unfortunately, both were saddled with 3 speed automatics, which were far more common than the 4 speeds. Big issue was oil consumption in the 98’s 1ZZ-FE. It used 0.5-1qt of oil per tank of gas. I looked around extensively at the time for a permanent fix with no success, so I sold it. Although I like the 98-02 generation better overall than the 93-97, the oil consumption issues are significant and common enough to preclude me from ever getting another one.
While no doubt screwed together better than anything Detroit was spewing out at the time, and basically impossible to kill, I can’t stand this generation of Corolla (or the 1998-2002 version) because they are such penalty boxes to live with, ride in, and drive.
I take issue with people calling this E90 generation a “mini-Lexus” on car sites, which I see all too often. Seriously? I have owned (and my family/friends have owned) every generation of Camry and even an Lexus ES, and I can tell you there is nothing Lexus-like or even Camry-like about a ’90s Corolla.
I’ve owned a lot of cars, and I briefly had the displeasure of buying a 1994 DX model in hearing aid beige as a $2000 runabout. It ranks as the most unpleasant driving and ownership experience I have had to date. I had the motor mounts replaced TWICE and the damn thing still shook and vibrated at idle like no one’s business. They were less bad about this when new, but that 1.6-liter coffee grinder was always a buzzy motor. Sound insulation was not that great, the ride was choppy thanks to the short wheelbase and cheap suspension design (drive any generation of Jetta and you can see how well a small car can ride), and anyone above about 5’8” barely fit in the thing, with its low roof, tiny doors caused by it’s “big car proportions” on a small body.
The upgrade to a quiet, smooth riding, roomy, base model Camry was well worth the cash when new, and I wouldn’t even consider one of these as a used beater. They are reliable and that’s about it. Oh, I didn’t even mention the 3-speed automatic, which ensures you worse fuel economy than a Camry on the freeway while listening to mechanical roar and the enigine drone along at 3700 RPM. Yes, so Lexus-like!
The 2003+ Corolla stepped up refinement a lot and fixed the roominess problem with its taller body. The 2009+ ones are actually pretty nice, very quiet and have low NVH versus past Corollas. The interiors are a little less premium than the supposedly “perfect” E100, but the room and NVH improvements vastly overshadow that shortcoming.
They are noisy little bombs compared to my Citroen but 3 speed auto? theres a button on the gearshift marked o/d to engage top gear.
Nope. The base model Corollas sold in the United States had a 3-speed automatic until 2002 (called “VE” trim on the E110) Only the upper trim levels got the 4-speed transmission with an overdrive gear.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toyota_Corolla_(E100)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toyota_Corolla_(E110)
Good grief!
The five-speed really made an enormous difference with the 4A-FE. My parents had an E90 Geo Prizm with that combination, which was very slick. I think the three-speed auto (which I experienced a few times in rental cars) was really ill-matched to the engine, adding an impression of buzziness and droning that the five-speed really didn’t have.
The stock Corolla and Prizm really went in for American-style suspension tuning, with the philosophy that damping control = harshness. It was actually quite plush on some surfaces, but because of the flaccid shock control, it would feel weak in the knees on choppy pavement and floaty over high-speed bumps. I’m not too enamored of that either, but I know it was a deliberate choice to make the Corolla feel more big-car-like (which it did in that sense, not necessarily in a good way).
People like to compare Toyotas to Mercedes too
Well after driving an old and worn Mercedes 190E (the “entry level” Benz), and two different Camrys from the same era (in similar if not better shape), I dont see the comparison.
A Toyota will last longer if you have access to exhaust bits and keep up with oil leaks, but a Benz will make you actually enjoy driving.
Yotas are closer to Detroits offerings, just better assembled with 4 screws where GM would’ve put 67 plastic clips.
This isn’t to say that Corollas are bad, mores so they’re very well assembled but still budget-focused watches. They’re not Rolexes (despite what some say), they just keep ticking on and on for eternity.
Thanks to my Father’s job, between 1990 until recently there has been a constant steam of Corolla and Prizm company cars in the family. We had three E100 Prizms, by far the best being the white LSi with the 1.8 7A-FE engine and 4ECAT. The difference between it and the 1.6 4A-FE + 3AT combo in the real world was insurmountable, and likely where the term mini-Lexus was derived. Peak torque in the larger 1.8 came at only 2800 RPM, making the car very relaxed to drive smoothly. The earlier E90’s and later E110’s we had were not as memorable.
as an owner of a 93 sedan(1.8L/5speed)with 297k miles as of today.i gotta tell you that it is the best 1200 dollars that I have ever spent.5 years of every day driving to work(76 miles both ways)all it neded 4 tires,front brakes(12 bucks)and belt for alternator(water pump)for 19 bucks.even the timing belt on these cars last over 120k miles.i was watching a film about Afghanistan,all taxies are 92-97 corollas(sedan&wagons)
4 speed Toyotas have an OD button on the shifter, but there were indeed three speed versions with a simple ‘T’ shifter.
Never seen a E100 3 speed auto they must have really decontented some to get the price down, even the commercial versions ex JDM which are completely accessory free have o/d auto and ac/console fridges.
Might’ve been some North America only trade-off of fuel economy versus list price…
I have a 93 Corolla DX that I use every single day as my commuter car. It has 262000 miles and the AC still blows ice cold. Got it off craigslist for $600 and put a little bit of money into it and its the perfect car! It has the 1.8L which is the superior engine in my opinion. No idea if the engine has been rebuilt but it must have, runs too darn good for such high miles. LOVE Toyotas!
I own the 2000 Corolla (LE) and I love it, with some caveats. I don’t know what a Lexus drives like, but my Mom called it a “little Avalon”. I did drive her mid-1990’s Avalon and I like the comparison. It has a cloth interior and is remarkably comfortable and quiet. The motor makes some noise under acceleration but it’s not excessive. It accelerates in my opinion very well if you aren’t afraid to “punch it”. If my foot is fast I can be the first car off the line at a stop light if I want to. It is low and wide but not uncomfortable and I think that adds to the looks. It is rather Batmobile-like. The “bling” is another matter. It’s LE trim and came with a 4 speed transaxle (I like that), but also aluminum wheels, plastic trim and window tinting. The wheels were warped and leaky and drove me mad until I replaced them with steel ones from a Prizm, and the plastic trim retains water and causes rust, and the tinting bubbles in the heat. Entropy has a grip on it but I want to keep it a long time.
Poorly applied aftermarket tint film always bubbles, nothing to do with Toyota though, the Avalon is a blinged Camry it was tried on the down under market and was a massive flop, these Corollas bear little resemblance to any Lexus Ive ever seen other than being made by the same people, my mate came round in his hatch yesterday and mentioned the noise riding in it, but he is used to his diesel Peugeot 406 which is silent not quiet silent at any speed so the plummet in quality to Toyota levels of NVH would always be obvious especially on a Corolla they were after all entry level motoring at best, reliable as the sun but cheap.
I gotta agree with MaxP; in all respects other than reliability/durability (maybe) these cars were hardly baby Lexuses (Lexi?). We bought a new leftover ’93 DX wagon when the ’94s (with dual airbags, not sure of other changes in the U.S., maybe ABS) were already on the lot. Ours had no AC (we had the dealer add it for abou $600) and was a manual 5 speed which was probably why it was unloved. It was very reliable, though it needed a water pump under warranty, and perhaps an O2 sensor recall. Fuel economy was decent, and the motor was actually quite flexible and pulled high gears quite well even on grades and in the mountains. Seat upholstery and interior trim held up quite well to two kids going through their most destructive years not behind the wheel. Cargo room was quite good too, with the convex rear window adding considerable volume compared to sleeker wagons. And there weren’t many alternatives on the American market at the time, for 5 speed small wagons. We cross-shopped Escort, Saturn, the upright Mitsubishi (Expo?) and Suzuki Sidekick. IIRC there was no Impreza wagon at the time, and that generation Accord wagon, which would have been my choice, though pricier, was AT only, as was the Camry wagon. But it certainly wasn’t any fun to drive.. And our other car was a Ford Ranger 4wd automatic, so our standards were pretty low. Notchy shifting, vague and heavy clutch, bad torque steer and horrible snow and rain traction (with both OEM Firestone and replacement Michelin tires), uncomfortable seats and lots of road and wind noise. BTW, the wagons were all made in Japan, at least for the U.S. market, not NUMMI.
I know this post is about 90’s Corolla’s but the only one I owned was a ’69 in the mid to late ’70’s but it shares a lot of attributes that made Corolla’s popular. To this day I regret getting rid of it because it was such a fun little car and was dependable no matter how much I flogged it. It had an 1100 cc engine, 4 speed manual transmission, 12″ tires, 8″ drum brakes, 8 gal gas tank. no power anything and when I opened the door I could put the palm of my hand on the road while seated in the drivers seat. Put a tachometer on the steering column and wound the engine regularly out to 5-6,000 rpm. Never had a bit of problem with the engine or drive train. Never got under 28 mpg and up to 40 if I drove it easy. Owned it for 3 years, paid $775.00 for it – got $425.00 when I got rear ended and sold it for $350.00. The only thing I ever bought for it was a set of snow tires and rims and of course gas, oil changes and insurance. Very cheap transportation even in those days. I wish I could say the same for the 2 Dodge Colt’s that I owned after it.
I do like the Toyota products that were developed before the “cost down” craze of the late 1990s, and I’d agree that this is likely the best Corolla of all the generations. In general, I find the Corolla totally forgettable, which may be the point. I think they were designed as low maintenance, “blend in” cars that just did their duty in a competent, quiet way. Nothing more, nothing less.
It’s a shame the E90 coupe flopped (not sure why, it was quite attractive, though looked a little like a shrunken Accord), because it deprived us of getting that E100 Levin pictured. Now *that* is a great-looking little coupe, and in black, that could be a convincing mini-Lexus!
The E100 sedans are still the pinnacle of quality, if other terms of endearment are debatable!
Just picked up a ’95 Geo Prizm 1.6 3 speed auto base model with AC and Kenwood CD. 200k miles. Body straight, paint still decent and interior is good no tears in cloth seats or cracks in dash. Replaced pads and warped rotors for $70.00. 2 new tires for $90.00. Replacing an ’04 Mazda6 that was recently totaled.
Paid $750.00. Prizm name is a great way to get a good deal on a Corolla. Runs great, will be mostly a low mile around town driver for a family member. Found it on CL and turned out to be 2 miles away.
Middle aged non college educated woman will be driving it, so meets Paul’s owner requirements. (Though not a cleaning lady).
Runs great. Time will tell to see how it holds up, but is well built and feels like it has a lot less miles on it.
Been driving my 1993 Corolla DX wagon (blue of course) since buying it new in 1993. Still runs well after 166k miles.
Best car ever been made. I still drive my 1993 XE corolla 5speed manual which i bought in 2006. The mileage meter broke somewhere around 400k kms some 10 yrs back but the same engine still runs like hell. With the rising fuel prices its a keeper because of its mileage.